Congratulations; your beer is finished! It's also flat and probably in a pretty inconvenient container. To create a finished product, you need to carbonate it and package it in a way that makes it easy to get at and drink. How you package your beer will help determine how you carbonate it as well. For additional information check out the article on Storing Your Beer.

Contents

Carbonating and Packaging for the Beginning Homebrewer

Beginning brewers generally prime their beer with sugar and bottle it; this is the simplest method of carbonation and packaging and requires the least amount of extra equipment. The simplest way to prime your beer is to add a measured amount of sugar (which may have come with your ingredient kit) to your beer in the bottling bucket, stir, and bottle (this is known as Bulk Priming). You should read the section on bottling below to ensure that you properly bottle and cap your beer, and if necessary the section on priming to determine how much priming sugar you need to add.

Bottling

The process of bottling beer is fairly simple and straightforward; however, it can be rather time consuming. The equipment you will need for bottling is as follows:

Rack the beer into the bottling bucket (this should ensure a good mix of the priming solution into the beer)

Attach some tubing to the spigot on the bottling bucket and attach the bottle filler to the other end of the tubing

Fill and cap each bottle

Store in a dark area at temperatures between 65 and 70 degrees F

It typically takes 3 weeks for bottles to become fully carbonated. During that time they should be kept away from light and at steady temperatures. Once the bottles are carbonated, they can be refrigerated until serving.

A Word About Bottle Bombs

Bottle bombs are a serious concern for the home brewer. These are caused when excess amounts of carbon dioxide are produced during the carbonation process. If the excess pressure builds up too much is can cause the bottle to explode, potentially harming anyone near the bottle.

If there is a potential for bottle bombs, or a bottle has already exploded, carefully place the remaining bottles in the refrigerator. It is highly advisable to wear gloves and eye protection during this process. The cold temperatures will slow the yeast down, reducing the risk of explosions. Once the bottles are under control, the beer can be enjoyed as usual.

Kegging

Many home brewers choose to build a kegging setup as it is less time consuming than bottling and beers can be enjoyed sooner with force carbonation. Kegging is initially more expensive with a basic 2-keg setup costing around $300, but the result of having your own beer on tap is well worth the extra cost.

Casks

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Mini-Kegs

Mini kegs are like regular kegs, only smaller.

Carbonation

Carbonation is created by dissolving carbon dioxide into the beer. This can be achieved in two ways: by adding extra sugar to a bottle, keg, or cask, and allowing the still viable yeast to create carbon dioxide through fermentation, or by forcing pressurized carbon dioxide into a container (usually a keg) and allowing it to dissolve into the beer.

For more detailed information on the various methods of carbonating beer, see the entry for Carbonation.